|
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
A friend of mine has a Raglan Little John that has hardened ground
rectangular steel bars for the ways which can be removed and might be reground. See http://www.lathes.co.uk/raglan/page12.html http://www.lathes.co.uk/raglan/index.html Christopher Tidy wrote: Hi all, Today I spent an idle moment pondering the design of machine tools. It occurred to me that the thing that often kills the accuracy of old lathes is wear to the ways at the headstock end. So I thought, why not build a lathe with replaceable ways? Either precision ground bars which screw onto the casting, or a simple set of ways which bolt onto the headstock at one end, and perhaps a pair of mounting feet underneath? And the best solution would be if all the manufacturers used the same dimensions of replaceable ways for each size of lathe... Anyone ever seen a lathe with intentionally replaceable ways? Best wishes, Chris |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
|
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
On Sat, 15 Apr 2006 01:09:30 +0100, David Billington
wrote: A friend of mine has a Raglan Little John that has hardened ground rectangular steel bars for the ways which can be removed and might be reground. See http://www.lathes.co.uk/raglan/page12.html http://www.lathes.co.uk/raglan/index.html Christopher Tidy wrote: Hi all, Today I spent an idle moment pondering the design of machine tools. It occurred to me that the thing that often kills the accuracy of old lathes is wear to the ways at the headstock end. So I thought, why not build a lathe with replaceable ways? Either precision ground bars which screw onto the casting, or a simple set of ways which bolt onto the headstock at one end, and perhaps a pair of mounting feet underneath? And the best solution would be if all the manufacturers used the same dimensions of replaceable ways for each size of lathe... Anyone ever seen a lathe with intentionally replaceable ways? Best wishes, Chris We manufactured a large lathe in the mid 70's that had them. No matter how you cut it a solid cast lathe bed with ground and scraped ways is always better for rigidity. Lots of builders are using linear bearing ways, still not as good as box ways. Regards Daveb |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
Hi all,
Today I spent an idle moment pondering the design of machine tools. It occurred to me that the thing that often kills the accuracy of old lathes is wear to the ways at the headstock end. So I thought, why not build a lathe with replaceable ways? Either precision ground bars which screw onto the casting, or a simple set of ways which bolt onto the headstock at one end, and perhaps a pair of mounting feet underneath? And the best solution would be if all the manufacturers used the same dimensions of replaceable ways for each size of lathe... Anyone ever seen a lathe with intentionally replaceable ways? Best wishes, Chris |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
"Christopher Tidy" wrote in message ... Hi all, Today I spent an idle moment pondering the design of machine tools. It occurred to me that the thing that often kills the accuracy of old lathes is wear to the ways at the headstock end. So I thought, why not build a lathe with replaceable ways? Either precision ground bars which screw onto the casting, or a simple set of ways which bolt onto the headstock at one end, and perhaps a pair of mounting feet underneath? And the best solution would be if all the manufacturers used the same dimensions of replaceable ways for each size of lathe... Anyone ever seen a lathe with intentionally replaceable ways? Best wishes, Chris LeBlond used replaceable ways in their contstuction at one point in time. They were rectangular as I recall. It's been many years since I last saw one.. Harold |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
Christopher Tidy wrote in
: Hi all, Today I spent an idle moment pondering the design of machine tools. It occurred to me that the thing that often kills the accuracy of old lathes is wear to the ways at the headstock end. So I thought, why not build a lathe with replaceable ways? Either precision ground bars which screw onto the casting, or a simple set of ways which bolt onto the headstock at one end, and perhaps a pair of mounting feet underneath? And the best solution would be if all the manufacturers used the same dimensions of replaceable ways for each size of lathe... Anyone ever seen a lathe with intentionally replaceable ways? Best wishes, Chris All kinds of them...they are called 'Linear way machines'. They use linear bearing ways, which are replaceable. Typical of about any real machine tool manufacturer out there. -- Anthony You can't 'idiot proof' anything....every time you try, they just make better idiots. Remove sp to reply via email |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
"Christopher Tidy" wrote in message ... Hi all, Today I spent an idle moment pondering the design of machine tools. It occurred to me that the thing that often kills the accuracy of old lathes is wear to the ways at the headstock end. So I thought, why not build a lathe with replaceable ways? Either precision ground bars which screw onto the casting, or a simple set of ways which bolt onto the headstock at one end, and perhaps a pair of mounting feet underneath? And the best solution would be if all the manufacturers used the same dimensions of replaceable ways for each size of lathe... Anyone ever seen a lathe with intentionally replaceable ways? Best wishes, Chris LeBlond Regal and some models of Lodge & Shipley have replaceable ways. The L&S that I seen was built in the late 40's or early 50's. LeBlond Regals that had replaceable ways I think were from the 60's on. At least the Regals that I have seen and used. I always wondered who in the area had a surface grinder with long enough travel to grind the ways. I would imagine that a planer with a 5 HP compound grinder could do it. Richard |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
************************************************** *************The Taig
(a nice small desktop machine) has a steel dovetail which bolts onto an aluminum framework filled with concrete to control vibration -- it is a little bigger than the Unimat mentioned above, but *much* more rigid. ************************************************** **************** Woodworkers will use mass to try to stabilze wood lathes as well. I have seen people put bags of lead shot across the systems. The beads, in addition to the mass, have some positive effect on absorbing vibration. Anybody ever fill metal lathes/ mills with lead shot? |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
Christopher Tidy wrote: Hi all, Today I spent an idle moment pondering the design of machine tools. It occurred to me that the thing that often kills the accuracy of old lathes is wear to the ways at the headstock end. So I thought, why not build a lathe with replaceable ways? Either precision ground bars which screw onto the casting, or a simple set of ways which bolt onto the headstock at one end, and perhaps a pair of mounting feet underneath? And the best solution would be if all the manufacturers used the same dimensions of replaceable ways for each size of lathe... Anyone ever seen a lathe with intentionally replaceable ways? The Taig Micro Lathe has a replaceable bed. It's similar in construction to a jeweller's lathe. The replacement only costs $62.25, but it a rather small lathe, and is a bit under half the cost of the complete unit in kit form. Leon |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
|
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
My 18 X 54 L & S It is like new. I am the second owner. It was made in '71
and it is a joy to use. It is so good they went out of business in the 80s. Think about it. Steve "Christopher Tidy" wrote in message ... Hi all, Today I spent an idle moment pondering the design of machine tools. It occurred to me that the thing that often kills the accuracy of old lathes is wear to the ways at the headstock end. So I thought, why not build a lathe with replaceable ways? Either precision ground bars which screw onto the casting, or a simple set of ways which bolt onto the headstock at one end, and perhaps a pair of mounting feet underneath? And the best solution would be if all the manufacturers used the same dimensions of replaceable ways for each size of lathe... Anyone ever seen a lathe with intentionally replaceable ways? Best wishes, Chris |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
Steve Lusardi wrote:
My 18 X 54 L & S It is like new. I am the second owner. It was made in '71 and it is a joy to use. It is so good they went out of business in the 80s. Think about it. Steve Thanks for the information. I'll keep an eye out for the machines you've mentioned and perhaps sometime get a chance to take a close look at one. Design of products which can be repaired and maintained is a big interest of mine. In fact, I'm working on a website about it at the moment, but progress is slow. I'll let you know when (if) it is finished. Best wishes, Chris |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
My Hardinge HLV toolroom lathe has replaceable (if expensive) dovetail
ways. I purchased a new dovetail from Hardinge, for around $800, fifteen or more years ago. The saddle, tailstock and other parts still needed to be aligned/scraped in, however. Not an easy or inexpensive proposition. But, keeping in mind what a new lathe of that degree of precision would have cost, it was all very reasonable. I don't know what Hardinge would have to charge for that part these days. I hear that the dovetail can be removed and reground by an experienced shop that does this sort of work and it is not that expensive. Cheers, Norman C |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
Design of products which can be repaired and maintained is a big
interest of mine. What about regrinding the ways? |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
On Sat, 15 Apr 2006 00:53:42 +0000, Christopher Tidy wrote:
Hi all, Today I spent an idle moment pondering the design of machine tools. It occurred to me that the thing that often kills the accuracy of old lathes is wear to the ways at the headstock end. So I thought, why not build a lathe with replaceable ways? Either precision ground bars which screw onto the casting, or a simple set of ways which bolt onto the headstock at one end, and perhaps a pair of mounting feet underneath? And the best solution would be if all the manufacturers used the same dimensions of replaceable ways for each size of lathe... Anyone ever seen a lathe with intentionally replaceable ways? Best wishes, Chris Hardinge HLV beds can be replaced for about $1500 (last time I checked). I worked on an engine lathe a long time ago that had a section under the head that was removable to accomodate a larger swing. I don't see why you couldn't replace that section if it became worn from use. Although, I'm sure the rest of the ways were ground to match -- Skuke Reverse the domain name to send email |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
Jordan wrote:
Design of products which can be repaired and maintained is a big interest of mine. What about regrinding the ways? Indeed. I was just wondering if you might be able to replace the ways (i) more cheaply, (ii) more readily and (iii) more times than is possible with a regrind. Chris |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
"Christopher Tidy" wrote in message ... Jordan wrote: Design of products which can be repaired and maintained is a big interest of mine. What about regrinding the ways? Indeed. I was just wondering if you might be able to replace the ways (i) more cheaply, (ii) more readily and (iii) more times than is possible with a regrind. Chris There are some obvious benefits from replacing ways, one of which is not losing orientation with related components. Machines that are so equipped tend to outwear soft cast iron ways, so the bed tends to outlast the balance of the machine and never need replacing. The advantage is a lathe that will maintain its original precision for a much longer period of time. Flame hardened and ground bedways are, for all practical purposes, just as good so long as they are properly ground at the outset. Harold. |
Ever seen a lathe with replaceable ways?
I worked for quite a while on a Lodge & Shipley 25x96 toolroom lathe
that has replaceable ways. Probably be a hard time finding replacements though. But they could be reground if you could find the right shop. Richard W. wrote: "Christopher Tidy" wrote in message ... Hi all, Today I spent an idle moment pondering the design of machine tools. It occurred to me that the thing that often kills the accuracy of old lathes is wear to the ways at the headstock end. So I thought, why not build a lathe with replaceable ways? Either precision ground bars which screw onto the casting, or a simple set of ways which bolt onto the headstock at one end, and perhaps a pair of mounting feet underneath? And the best solution would be if all the manufacturers used the same dimensions of replaceable ways for each size of lathe... Anyone ever seen a lathe with intentionally replaceable ways? Best wishes, Chris LeBlond Regal and some models of Lodge & Shipley have replaceable ways. The L&S that I seen was built in the late 40's or early 50's. LeBlond Regals that had replaceable ways I think were from the 60's on. At least the Regals that I have seen and used. I always wondered who in the area had a surface grinder with long enough travel to grind the ways. I would imagine that a planer with a 5 HP compound grinder could do it. Richard |
| All times are GMT +1. The time now is 09:23 AM. |
Powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004 - 2014 DIYbanter